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TMI Blog1976 (3) TMI 142X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... or and partly there is an amount of Rs. 62,000 which was to be contributed by the propounders of the scheme to carry out the same. There are problems concerning the payment of commission to the official liquidator and problems concerned with the payment to some of the creditors. Also, after the scheme had been sanctioned, certain amounts have been received by the official liquidator and there is a problem as to whether the official liquidator is entitled to get any commission on the receipt of those amounts, and whether he is also to get commission on the disbursal of the amounts. As I have said, this is an unusual case, because a company which had closed down for all practical purposes, has been revived after the winding up had proceeded for a considerable time and now we have to determine what are the rights of the official liquidator in respect of the funds which he has collected on behalf of the company after the scheme was sanctioned and also whether the official liquidator is entitled to commission on the amount contributed by the propounders of the scheme. I now proceed to deal with the various questions raised in the application one by one. It is stated in the application ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... al liquidator should now proceed to determine these claims. In fact, it is the company which should determine the claims and, if the company disputes the same, it should direct the persons concerned to move the court under section 392 of the Companies Act, 1956, to seek a direction from the court as to whether their claims are payable or not. Thus, the direction in this respect is that the claims need not now be determined by the official liquidator, but should be determined by the company and, in case the company finds difficulty in dealing with the same, or there are some creditors not covered by the scheme, then the persons concerned should be directed to move this court under section 392 of the Act. Coming now to third question, it is stated that the official liquidator has received a sum of Rs. 4,648.75 from the debtors of the company after the scheme had been sanctioned by the court. Naturally, this amount has to be paid to the company and need not be retained by the official liquidator. Indeed, the applicant rightly seeks a direction that all monies to be paid to the company should in future be handed over to the company by the official liquidator retaining the same. I wil ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n on all realisations made, a certain percentage has to be paid on each year's collection. The percentage is 3% on the first sum of Rs. 10,000 and 2% on the next Rs. 40.000 and 1% on the subsequent Rs. 50,000. Above Rs. 1,00,000 the percentage is 3/4%. Thus, the percentage to be paid to the Central Government is payable on a slab system. On distribution, the percentage is 1/2 of this amount. Similarly, there is a commission to be paid for realisations of property for debenture-holders and other secured creditors. It the official liquidator acts as a trustee under a scheme of arrangement, or performs any special duties, the court can fix the scale of fees. Similarly, if the official liquidator acts as liquidator in a creditors' voluntary winding up or, in case there are additional liquidators under section 527 of the Act, the fees payable are adjustable by the court. Finally, if there is a reconstruction of the company in liquidation or a scheme of arrangement concerning its affairs, or if for any other reason the court is of opinion that the fees prescribed are excessive and a reduction should be made, the court has power to reduce the same. The present is a case where there is n ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tor from the debtors of the company is with the official liquidator and should be directed to be refunded to the company. As this amount has been realised by the official liquidator, the fees for making the realisations are payable to the Central Government under rule 291. However, the official liquidator is not required to disburse this amount as the company has come under a scheme of arrangement. The amount is, therefore, to be paid to the company itself which has now been revived and is not to be distributed by the official liquidator. I accordingly hold on this point that the Central Government is entitled to get commission for realisations according to the scale fixed under rule 291, but not on disbursals. Finally, therefore, a question as to whether the Central Government is to get any fees on account of disbursements which are to be made under the scheme. This raises a peculiar and unusual question because there is no doubt that the amounts in question have been realised by the official liquidator during the winding up proceedings. After the sanctioning of the scheme, the amounts have merely to be paid to the persons carrying out the scheme. Can this be described as disbur ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ompany against albeit a company working under a scheme. This means that monies expended by the company under the scheme cannot be treated as disbursals made by the official liquidator. For this reason, reading rule 291 of the Companies (Court) Rules, 1959, and the provisions of sections 391 and 392 of the Companies Act, 1956, together, I come to the conclusion that the Central Government has not to be paid any fees on disbursals made under the scheme. However, inasmuch as the official liquidator may still be making some realisations under the previous orders of the court and may continue to receive monies on behalf of the company, those will have to be treated as being realisations and the same will be subject to the prescribed fees payable for realisations under rule 291. If the monies are received directly by the company without the intervention of the official liquidator, then no fees will be paid to the Central Government in respect of such fees. The court has, in respect of these realisations, power, as I have already stated, to reduce the rate at which the fees are to be paid in case it is found that the amounts are excessive. In fact, the amounts do not seem to be large in t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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